Posted on 08/08/2008 10:19:24 PM PDT by Maelstorm
A sitting senator resisting to back the party’s choice to succeed him would be extraordinary in itself, but Warner’s seat also is a top target for Democrats next year looking to increase its majority in the Senate.
The once-reliably Republican commonwealth has gradually been tilting toward the Democratic column in recent years. Junior senator Jim Webb (D) surprised many by narrowly defeating incumbent Republican George Allen in 2006, for example.
Warner has history with both of his potential successors. Democrat Mark Warner, Virginia’s governor from 2002 to 2006, narrowly lost to the senator in a 1996 bid for his seat. Mark Warner briefly flirted with a presidential campaign in 2006 but instead announced his Senate candidacy within days of John Warner’s retirement announcement. He has clinched the Democratic nomination.
Mark Warner is also a former staff member to Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.). Both Warners are considered legislative centrists.
Gilmore, who preceded Mark Warner in the Virginia governor’s office from 1998 to 2002, narrowly won the GOP nomination for the seat over the weekend and is trailing in state polls. He succeeded Allen as Virginia governor and from 2001 to 2002 was chairman of the Republican National Committee.
Like John Warner, Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.) has been less than enthusiastic toward Gilmore’s candidacy. Davis once eyed the seat himself but opted not to run after the party chose to select its nominee through convention – a process that favored the more conservative Gilmore.
(Excerpt) Read more at thehill.com ...
Let John Warner know how you feel:
http://warner.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=Contact.ContactForm
Here is a link to Tom Davis: (Looks like he has been making buddies with the worm I look like a rat Waxman)
Virginia COULD have had one of the greatest Senators ever, except for Senator RINO Warner stabbing Ollie North in the back.
I’ve had absolutely no use for the worthless POS since then.
Screw Warner, and good riddance. If Virginians are stupid enough to elect a *second* ‘Rat to replace the retiring scumbag, they won’t even be able to tell the difference.
We should have run Saxman for this seat.
You make a good point. Outreach isn’t worth much when you lose one base voter for each new voter and the new voter won’t send checks like the old base voter did. Stupid Party is too polite.
Another good reason to be happy that he is going.
Might as well have demonRATS in there, for all the damage these RINO's do.
Okay...
1) This story is two months old
2) John Warner is 81 and in no shape to be in the Senate, much less on the campaign trail.
3) This last fundraising period, John Warner contributed $2,000 to Jim Gilmore (almost the maximum allowed)
The bottom line is that John Warner and Tom Davis aren’t the reason Jim Gilmore is going to get his fanny kicked.
Jim Gilmore is.
You should have been pinged.
The reason is because Republicans in Virginia don’t have their priorities straight. They are behaving oddly for some reason.
Mark Warner lied, raised taxes, is a certain liberal vote in the Senate. Jim Gilmore must have pissed someone off because he is working this race hard and Republicans are still polling for Warner. This should not be happening. Does the VA GOP want Gilmore to lose? He cut taxes and left the state in great shape the party was riding high when he was Governor. Mark Warner represents a far left swing because he will vote with Dick Durbin, he will vote with Obama, he will vote with Jay Rockefeller, he will vote with Robert Byrd, he will vote with Jim Web, he will vote with Harry Reid. He is a disgrace and we have a proven conservative candidate and he is out there working hard his schedule is packed full. What is wrong with the bait biting Republican Party. Liberal Democrats at least understand what team they are on and what is at stake. I didn’t know John Warner donated the maximum to Jim Gilmore. He and state Representatives have hardly been helping and I’ve been following this race closely. Rhinos have even endorsed Warner and the media has been propping Warner up. There should be 24x7 ads showing Warner promising not to raise taxes but instead the national party and Republicans donors have left this race to the dogs.
I don’t like Warner’s record either but this situation with Mark Warner should be attempted to be remedied. Since when have we had someone on video lying to the public and then raising taxes? This is a no brainer and for some reason the GOP can’t catch these soft balls. Gilmore is running hard at the grassroots. His message is working but not fast enough. Mark Warner’s negatives have went up almost 10 points since Gilmore has been hitting. We need to have ads to beat him into a pulp the lying filthy liberal he is.
Oh there are plenty of reasons the Virginia GOP has bailed out on Gilmore. I've got the knife scars in my back to prove it.
If he had a prayer of beating Mark Warner, folks might begrudgingly support him. But he, and his consultants, have burned too many bridges.
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